I had read so many reviews and watched videos raving about the Sony A7RII, about the amazing focus accuracy, killer low light performance, and of course that Eye AF. So when it arrived at 3pm I took it right out to my scheduled shoot that day with a model from Next Models Miami. With all those amazing reviews you can image my surprise to be, well...very underwhelmed. Now as a Canon user since I started in photography, I knew there would be a little learning curve (I do have the Sony RX100 III as well so maybe not a huge learning curve but some just the same). Even with that I knew how to set it up for best results and I just wasn't impressed with the results. The focus detection, face detection etc. was solid but somehow I still had missed/out of focus shots (which I never have on the Canon using center point focus)....maybe that was something I just needed time to get used to. But then there was the main thing....the color is just...yuk. Especially skin tones. Here's the thing....the colors with a Canon are just beautiful straight out of the camera. Doesn't really matter what lens you use but with the 70-200mm or a prime like the 135mm, 200mm etc. are just amazing...skin tones are soft and perfect...greens pop etc. The sony colors were just blah...and I tried the different settings to no avail. So frustrating and so disappointing. I came home after the shoot...googled something about Sony colors in the A series cameras and wow...quite of bit of discussion from others complaining about the same issue and all sorts of sony fans with their ways to fix it in post. Hmm...truth is, it is much harder and much more work to try and add good coloring in post than it is to have great color straight out of the camera and desaturated in post if that's the look you're going for. I'm not looking for anything that makes me work harder. If I'm going to pay $3000 for the A7RII and an FE 85mm 1.8 and make the switch, it has to, in the very least be as good as my 6D and my 70-200mm 2.8 AND have a couple bells and whistles that my Canon doesn't have. For me, this was not the case. My Canon set up blew the doors off the Sony (at least in my every day outdoor, fashion work environment). Maybe the low light ability or tracking focus was better but those weren't the reasons I was thinking of switching. So, with a disappointed and heavy heart, I packed it up, filled out the return info and took the whole package off to UPS. That's my little story of 1 day with the Sony A7RII and why I am sticking with Canon. You'll have to decide on your own for your work environment, taste etc. but for me it just doesn't come close to a Canon full frame and some beautiful Canon glass.

Calling all artists...photographers, makeup artists, stylists, hairdressers and anyone else who wants to join as we strike to send a message to the rest of the industry and those who need us that our talent and skill is valued and should be compensated fairly.

We, and I use "we" because I have been guilty of "TFP", collaborations etc. myself. Not just in the very beginning but along the way. There are a few schools of thought behind the collaboration/TFP. Maybe we're doing it to get our name out there. Maybe we're trying to prove ourselves to some agency that we can do the job, that we are good enough etc. Sure there is a time for this type of thing...in the very beginning, while we're building our book/portfolio....when we're not good enough. These are not the people I am reaching out to. I am reaching out to every talented artist I see who IS good enough, has tremendous skill/craft who are still doing this. STOP! We are being taken advantage and used.

What other industry would do this? If you cleaned pools, would you really clean a bunch of pools for free to get started? Discount maybe...free probably not and you definitely wouldn't continue to do it once you were a pro. And imagine if your business was cleaning pools, washing cars, making sandwiches if people were to approach you and want you to work for free. That's crazy right? but we do it all the time. Why would we do that? Oh right, because it's 'collaborative'...it gets our name out there. Guess what happens...that same person you shot who is going to post and get your name out there...he/she is also shooting with every other artist and giving them equal advertising as well. Kind of cancels out what we were trying to do. Speaking of our industry. There was a day not that far in the past where things worked like this. If you were a new model or new photographer and trying to build your portfolio you would find others to collaborate with at your level. Once you had a solid portfolio and had a rate you moved forward getting paid for the work you did. Now that free work and collaboration continues as if we're trying not to let the sand slip through our fingers. Take a look at the modeling agencies. There was a day when photographers who shot models from the agencies got paid. They had to...there were only so many talented photographers who shot that kind of work around. But today with DSLR cameras/gear becoming more affordable and knowledge and software a click away, so many photographers are knocking on agency doors they no longer have to pay. We did this to our own industry.

What if we stopped working for free? ALL of us. What would agencies, boutiques, designers etc. do? They would have to pay. So to keep it simple, I am asking all artists to join me on a strike from any and all free work/collaborations. While I'd like to see it go on forever and completely take our industry back, I am just asking that we all try it for 2 months (Dec and Jan). Just to see if we can make anyone take notice. I mean, what if not one photographer shot one agency model for 2 months at the start of the season here in South Florida when they need to update their portfolios. 2 things would happen....the couple photographers who do still get paid from time to time would get more work than they could handle and two, some of the rest would start getting the paid work they'd been missing. Is it scary...sure it is. If only some of us go on strike then we fear everyone else is progressing and getting new work/clients. The universe is bigger than that....there is enough abundance to go around to everyone. Someone else's success has nothing to do with our journey. We have to trust that and value our time, our talent and our craft. We and what we create is worth it.

SO please join me by posting on your social media in your own way that you are supporting this artist's strike against free work. On a last note, you are welcome to share this post with a fellow artist to show what it's about but I'm not looking for followers or any attention (will probably lose some). In closing, this is about all of us. We share the same issues, pain, struggle etc. Let's come together for a change. Let our clients choose their artist based on talent instead of who is the best who will work for free. Let's take back this industry together.

I've had a Mettle 600AD moonlight for years. It served me well and I've shot some nice work with that in my gear. However, when I saw there were newer monolights with onboard rechargeable batteries, I had to get one. Simply not having that separate battery pack and cords to carry around is a definite plus.

So I ordered one and I took it out the other day on a shoot. Thought I'd share the results. Gear used: Xplor 600, a 22" beauty dish and a Canon 6D with a 70-200mm F/2.8. Most everything was shot in pretty bright sunlight the last 2 hours of the day and other than some skin/blemish correction these are almost straight out of the camera.

From the first shot I was in love. Plenty of power to beat the sun...easy to adjust power levels... and lightweight. These were all shot in manual but tested the TTL and it worked perfect. I know this is more of sharing samples than it is a full review but hope you enjoy

For years I've used a 22" beauty dish for most of my fashion work and while I love the light, it's a little heavy, somewhat cumbersome etc. So I picked up this Neewer 24"x24" collapsible softbox. I love it...super easy to set up and love the light. Here are some samples from a test shoot

Being a Senior Rep for Kaunis Hetki Photography is a very rewarding opportunity for any Senior looking for an amazing senior session at an extremely affordable price!! As a side bonus it can also be a spring board into modeling as several seniors I've shot over the years I've helped go on to get signed to modeling agencies. I've shot for all of the agencies in South Florida (Wilhelmina, Next, Ford, Elite etc) and if you're interested in modeling, we can discuss during our shoot.

How it works:

Senior Reps are a way for Photographers to get their name out and gain new clients. As a Rep, it's your job to help spread the word about Kaunis Hetki Photography in a few ways and promise to do a few small things to help reach more students. Please read through the following guidelines below:

Once your edits are available to you, you and your parents will share your portraits on Facebook along with a small summary of your positive experience with Kaunis Hetki Photography (customer service, price, easy/fun etc).

Post on social media (FB, IG etc.) by sharing at least once per month an image from your session and a shout out recommending Kaunis Hetki Photography to your followers.

Kaunis Hetki Photography will exclusively be your Senior Portrait Photographer. Meaning: You will not use any other Photographers for Senior Portraits, or shoot with other local photographers for the 2016-2017 year.

What you get: A full senior session (a $300 value -see below)...bonus images may be given to those with the best shout outs or the most referrals so be sure to tag me and also to let your friends know to mention you when they book their session. You may get some new edits from your session.

A typical senior session is $300 which includes 10-12 edited images plus a black and white of each as a bonus. No other fees or packages to buy.

Earlier in my career as a photographer I remember trying to find out what kind of lighting and modifiers the pros were using for their studio shots. Of course I would see moonlights, huge brolly umbrellas, soft boxes etc. So...it took awhile but of course, as soon as I had enough money I ran out and bought myself some of the same gear. So there I was with my monolights, my beauty dish, softbox and my backdrop and ready for the wow factor that just never came. What did, was a greatly increased set up time, an assistant to help set everything up and an SUV to haul it all around. Well, not quite but almost. What happened in the course of my journey was that I guess I got pretty good with a little cheap speed light. So when finally invested in a 'better' brush, it didn't really matter because I knew what to do and how to do it with the small cheap one I had been using all along. There is something to be said about this cheap and easy set up of a speed light and simple light modifier....it's light, quick to set up and cheap (when it falls over on the concrete or in the water...as lighting tends to do...it's $80 to pick up another not $1500). For me, one of the best parts is that I don't have to go in a studio to shoot the headshots....I can do it on location while shooting the rest of the portfolio. All I need is a white wall in the shade. Might have to add 2 more to my Santa wish list as stocking stuffers. Below are 2 examples and a BTS shot using a Yongnuo 560 III and an Fstoppers FlashDisc.

Just bought a new Triumph Bonneville T100 and of course couldn't wait to include it in a shoot. So day one I happened to have a session scheduled with Samantha and decided to ride the bike to the shoot. As usual, nothing very complicated here....I just pulled over on the side of the road where the sun was coming through the woods and this is what we came up with......